Does Performance Matter for MMR? An In-Depth Look

Hey there fellow gamer! If you play competitive online games, you may have heard players obsess over their MMR, or matchmaking rating. MMR is that hidden numeric score that determines your skill level and who you get matched with in games.

But how exactly is MMR determined, and does your own performance in matches matter at all for how much MMR you gain or lose? As an avid Overwatch, League of Legends and Valorant player myself, I decided to dive deeper into the mysteries of MMR systems. Read on for some fascinating insights!

What is MMR and What Affects It?

For starters, let‘s get the basics covered – what even is MMR?

MMR stands for matchmaking rating, and it‘s an invisible stat used in multiplayer games like League, Valorant, Dota 2, Overwatch and more. It‘s a numeric representation of your skill level.

According to Riot Games (developers of League and Valorant), here‘s how MMR works:

• You gain MMR when you win matches, and lose MMR when you lose.
• Your in-game performance and stats do NOT directly affect how much MMR you gain or lose. KDA, damage dealt, healing etc. don‘t change your MMR adjustments.
• The only factor that impacts your MMR changes is whether your team won or lost the match.

So in essence, your MMR is a score that goes up and down based only on your match results. Let‘s take a closer look at how some popular competitive games handle MMR.

MMR Systems in Different Games

Most major competitive multiplayer games today use performance-agnostic MMR systems based solely on wins and losses. Here are some examples:

League of Legends

Riot Games has confirmed that only match results affect your ranked MMR in League of Legends. Your KDA, CS, damage etc. have no direct bearing on LP gains or losses.

However, your MMR is hidden – the only visible indicator is your rank between Iron and Challenger. Having a high MMR does increase LP gains and improves rankings.

VALORANT

Much like League, Riot has emphasized that performance does NOT affect your ranked MMR changes in Valorant. Performance can only indirectly influence your MMR over time by helping you win more games.

Valorant displays your visible Competitive tier (Iron to Radiant) and hidden MMR separately. You can check your live MMR on tracker sites like Tracker.gg and Blitz.

Overwatch

Blizzard has never officially revealed exact details of how MMR works in Overwatch. But most evidence suggests it‘s similar to other games – match results are the only factor and stats don‘t directly change your MMR. The Community Manager stated on the forums that personal performance isn‘t considered for MMR.

Your skill rating (SR) acts as an visible indicator of your hidden MMR in Overwatch. SR ranges from 1 to 5000.

Dota 2

Dota 2 Matchmaking is based on the Elo rating system. Valve has confirmed that only wins and losses change your hidden MMR, nothing else.

MMR is separated into Core and Support pools in Dota 2. Visible badges indicate Milestones between Herald and Immortal ranks.

As we can see, most major competitive games today work off a performance-agnostic MMR system based purely on win/loss results. But it wasn‘t always this way…

An Exception – Heroes of the Storm

Heroes of the Storm by Blizzard is one game that took a different approach. In HotS, personal stats directly affected how much MMR you gained or lost after a match beyond just winning or losing.

Their reasoning was stats help indicate how well you performed compared to others on your hero. So doing more hero damage as Junkrat should boost your MMR more than playing poorly.

However, the HotS community was divided on this system. Some liked rewarding good play, while others argued it encouraged selfish stat padding over teamwork. And determining which stats were most valuable for each hero was challenging to get right.

Eventually after much negative feedback, [Heroes of the Storm reworked their MMR system](https://news.blizzard.com/en-us/heroes-of-the-storm/23177191/heroes-of-the-storm-balance-patch-notes-april-25-2019# ranked) in April 2019 to a pure wins and losses model like other games. Your performance no longer alters MMR adjustments.

This example illustrates some of the pitfalls of incorporating performance in MMR calculations. It‘s hard to accurately reward good play for each character in a team game.

Does Performance Indirectly Affect MMR Over Time?

Based on how most popular competitive games handle MMR, your individual performance clearly doesn‘t directly change your matchmaking rating. Only match results matter in the end.

However, performance can still have an indirect influence on your MMR gains and losses over the long run. Here‘s how:

• If you consistently play well, you‘re more likely to win your games overall. More wins = faster MMR increase.

• If you often perform poorly and make lots of mistakes, you‘ll lose more games as a result. More losses = slower MMR gains.

Think of it as a positive feedback loop. Good play leads to higher winrates. Higher winrates in turn bump your MMR up faster long-term. The reverse is true for poor performance.

So your performance still matters indirectly, even if stats themselves don‘t alter your MMR changes immediately!

Why Winrate Matters Most for MMR Climbing

Based on the above, focusing on your winrate should clearly be your top priority if you want to climb the MMR ladder! Let‘s explore why:

Win Streaks are Key

According to Riot devs, going on win streaks results in bigger LP and MMR gains per victory in LoL and Valorant.

The system wants to reward big winstreaks by boosting your MMR faster when you‘re consistently winning. This enables quicker climbs to your true skill tier.

Losses Must Be Minimized

Conversely, going on losing streaks tanks your MMR heavily with larger MMR losses per defeat.

Limiting losses prevents massive drops. Take breaks if you‘re tilted or having an off day. The fewer losses the better for your MMR.

Winrate Must Be Consistently High

Maintaining a solid winrate over 55-60% over a large sample of games is the most reliable path for MMR increase.

Winrate reflects your consistency. The higher your winrate, the more you‘re proving your skill to the automated system.

Here are the estimated average winrates expected to climb tiers in League of Legends:

Tier	Winrate Needed
Iron	50%
Bronze	51%
Silver	52%
Gold	53%
Platinum	54%
Diamond	55%+

As you can see, the winrate needed to climb steadily increases the higher you go. Keeping winrate high requires focus!

MMR vs Visible Ranks – Why They Differ

One recurring theme across MMR systems is the gap between your hidden MMR and visible rank or rating. Unlike MMR, ranks reset or partially reset each competitive season.

Let‘s take Valorant as an example:

• Your MMR does NOT reset between Acts and Episodes. It persists across seasons.
• Your Competitive tier gets soft reset downwards between each Act.

This means it‘s common for your live MMR to differ significantly from your visible rank, especially right after a reset. The system uses your MMR for matchmaking, not your rank.

For instance, you could be ranked Silver but playing in Gold/Platinum MMR games if your MMR is higher. The opposite can happen too – you have a high visible Platinum rank but got there randomly and now your MMR is much lower.

This creates a desire to "fix" your MMR by bringing it closer to your displayed competitive tier. Luckily the matchmaking system organically handles this.

How MMR and Rank Sync Back Up

If your rank is too different from your MMR, the competitive system automatically syncs them back up over time through LP gains.

Let‘s look at some examples:

Scenario 1

Jim ended last Act in Platinum. After the soft reset, he‘s placed back in Silver. But his hidden MMR remains high at 2300.

Now Jim is ranked Silver but playing in Platinum MMR games.

To pull his rank up to match his skill, Jim will:

• Gain much MORE LP per win
• Lose much LESS LP per loss

This accelerated LP gain will quickly boost Jim‘s visible rank back up to Platinum where his MMR already lies.

Scenario 2

Sarah also finished last Act in Platinum, but got there by getting lucky with teams, not actual skill. Her real MMR is low at 1500.

After the reset, Sarah again places in Silver like Jim. But her low MMR indicates she belongs in Silver, not Platinum.

So Sarah will:

• Gain LESS LP per win
• Lose MORE LP per loss

This will gradually pull Sarah‘s inflated Platinum rank DOWN to her Silver MMR level.

As you can see, the ranked system organically syncs your visible tier with your hidden MMR when they differ too much. Playing more ranked games accelerates this syncing process.

What If My MMR Seems Lower Than It Should Be?

"My winrate is 60%… but I‘m gaining +14 LP per win and losing -18 LP per loss. Why is my MMR so low?"

This is frustrating but common early in a new ranked season after the soft MMR reset. Here are some tips to improve your MMR faster:

1. Focus on Consistent Improvement

• Actively work on better game sense, mechanics, macro skills.
• Watch your own replays to identify mistakes.
• Adopt optimal strategies for your chosen champion. Become a true expert!

Improving your own gameplay is the best way to win more games.

2. Specialize in a Few Comfort Picks

Sticking to just 1-3 champions you know inside out is proven to boost winrates. Some examples:

• Tyler1 dominating with Draven to hit Challenger in League of Legends
• Dafran terrorizing servers with Soldier 76 during early Overwatch seasons

Limit your champion pool and truly master them.

3. Take Breaks to Avoid Tilt

Going on autopilot and playing while tilted is a recipe for losing streaks that nuke your MMR.

If you lose 2+ games in a row, stop playing ranked for a few hours. Untilt and come back fresh. Avoid MMR destroying loss streaks.

4. Play More Ranked Games

The more games the system has to assess you, the faster your visible rank normalizes with your MMR.

If you want your true skill represented, grind ranked consistently. This will fix MMR quicker.

Follow these tips, and your improving skills + consistency will translate into a great winrate. That winrate will steadily boost your hidden MMR over time – even if your rank doesn‘t show it yet!

The Verdict: Focus on Wins, Not Stats, for MMR

After analyzing various MMR systems in depth, the verdict is clear – focusing on consistent wins is far more important than chasing flashy stats for MMR gains.

If you want to climb the ladder, stop obsessing about your KDA and start obsessing more about your winrate! Keep winning series of games, avoid losing streaks, and your MMR has no choice but to rise.

Of course, playing well makes winning easier. So good gameplay will ultimately fuel MMR climbs over the long run too. Just don‘t expect your 20 kill VODs to instantly rocket your MMR upwards.

Patience and perseverance pays off. Stay determined in pursuit of wins, not just highlights, and you‘ll reach your desired skill tier in due time.

I hope these insights help you understand the inner workings of MMR systems and how to climb them more effectively. Let me know if you have any other questions – I‘m always happy to chat gaming!